Bay's best play...

Rating: 9/10 (12 February 2006)

The Island marks Bay's first non Bruckheimer affiliated feature film, instead it was Steven Spielberg who called him up, sent him the script and ultimately signed him to do it. Good for him. Renowned for his fantastic visuals and heart pumping action this is Bay's first effort where he successfully combines these considerable talents with good storytelling.
Lincoln Echo six (McGregor) and Jordan Delta Two (Johansson) are two clones living a sterile, uneventful life among a whole population of clones in a tucked away super hi tech cloning facility. They are close friends, sometimes too close for the comfort of the many guards who monitor every aspect of their lives. Lincoln senses that something's amiss and questions his boring life, seeking release from the boring job and his daily toil. Once Jordan wins a trip to a mysterious island - the last uncontaminated place on Earth - Lincoln probes a little deeper and makes a gruesome discovery. Together with Jordan he escapes the facility and discovers what he has feared all along: his life was nothing but a big lie and the reason he exists is for spare parts. In a desperate efforts to keep his doings under wraps lead doctor Merrick (Sean Bean) spares no effort in recapturing his "escaped products".
This was truly one of the best films in a while, as always Michael Bay delivers excellent camera work, fast editing and suspense. He skillfully narrates what could have been a dull clone story in his unique style. Aside from the cool shots and sophisticated lighting/ production design McGregor and Johansson bring a lot to the film through their performances as do Steve Buscemi and the always great Sean Bean.